The Bishop's Tomb, from Vedute

Discussion

FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG

Unlike painting, printmaking allowed Canaletto to separate and combine images at his own discretion. He etched the outer two vignettes (1922.1381.10 and .12) on a single plate before cutting it in two. Then he reversed their order and positioned a third, unrelated segment seen here between them. This plate is the missing piece from View of a Town with a Bishop’s Tomb (1922.1381.8). Besides reusing fragments of larger plates, these mysterious composite prints appear to have little in common beyond the archways and statues they contain.

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